Unit Plan: American Gothic

Literary Selections:

“Tell Tale Heart” (handout) “The Raven” (textbook) by Edgar Allan Poe

“I Heard a Fly Buzz”“Because I Could Not Stop for Death”“I Felt a Cleaving in My Mind” “My Life Closed Twice Before its Close” “This is My Letter To the World” (handouts)

“Legend of Sleepy Hollow”- Washington Irving (handout)

Time frame: approximately 5 weeks

Summative Assessments:

  • Literary Selection Test (multiple choice and short answer) Edgar Allan Poe & Emily Dickinson
  • Literary Selection Test- (multiple choice and short answer) Washington Irving &”Legend of Sleepy Hallow”
  • Timed Writing- Literary Analysis style prompt

Student Notes / Don’t Get It / 50/50 / I Got This:
I Can:
I can understand the following historical information and how it applies to literature:
  • Author(s) Background
  • Gothic and Romantic Historical Background Information
  • Gothic qualities of a piece of literature

Thematic Questions/Topics: I can:
  • Define what “gothic” means.
  • Understand which American hopes, fears, and anxieties are explored and critiqued by writers in the gothic mode.
  • Evaluate the generally skeptical, pessimistic, or critical positions adopted by gothic writers

I can identify the following literary terms:
Literary Terms/Devices
  • Rhyme:
    Slant Rhyme and Exact Rhyme
  • Irony
  • Paradox

I can identify and use the following vocabulary words:
From the literary pieces:
  • Conquest noun
  • Diligent adj.
  • Drowsy adj.
  • Haunt verb
  • Perceive verb
  • Psalm noun
  • Quest noun
  • Rival noun
  • Rustic adjective
  • Specter noun
  • Speculate verb
  • Sufficient
  • Superstition noun
  • Vicinity noun

Content: While reading my literary selections I will be familiar with the text’s use of
  • Setting
  • Characterization
  • Violence
  • Supernatural Elements
  • Psychological Elements
  • Allusion
  • Symbols

Grammar—I can recognize the following grammatical concepts:
  • Verb tense switches
  • Basic grammar errors in spelling, capitalization, and punctuation

Writing—I can
  • Write a literary analysis essay.
  • Formulate a thesis that will support my opinion.
  • Follow MLA guidelines .
  • Craft a well developed argument.
  • Support my argument with textual evidence.
  • Understand the format of a timed essay

Visualization—I can
  • Link visual images to the thematic concerns of the literary selections

Speaking and Listening—I can
  • Participate in extended classroom discussion over literary selections
  • Listen critically to what my classmates and teacher have to say regarding literary selections